


Perfect Match

by ChocolateLime



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Eventual Smut, Fluff, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Idiots in Love, M/M, Matchmaking, No Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:54:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23736436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChocolateLime/pseuds/ChocolateLime
Summary: Magnus and Simon run an Elite matchmaking service. Jace convinces his brother they should sign up.
Relationships: Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Simon Lewis/Jace Wayland
Comments: 68
Kudos: 132





	1. Perfect Match

**Author's Note:**

> I hope I have managed to do this idea justice, it's been in note form in my draft forever and kept pestering me to write it. 
> 
> Alec will date and sleep with other people, there will be absolutely no cheating and no angst. Smut in future chapters, hence the rating. I will add tags as I go.

Magnus took pride in his achievements, and nothing made him prouder than his newest business venture, ‘Perfect Match’. He worked incredibly hard at everything he set out to create and owned a hotel, night club, restaurant and designer clothing line. He loved every one of his companies but none more so than Perfect Match. There was just something about helping people fall in love that was more than work, almost like giving back to the community. Granted the community he was giving back to were among the wealthiest residents Manhattan had to offer, even their most basic services went into four figures, and the more exclusive packages would make the eyes water of even the most affluent people in the City.

While Magnus has regular update meetings on all his companies, and personally designs the signature pieces for his fashion line, everything pretty much ran as clockwork under his carefully selected and trusted managers. The people Magnus chose to head up his various ventures was his closest friends, people he knew he could trust and who would treat all their staff well. Nothing was more important to him than the welfare of his employees. After a rocky start in life Magnus had built his own family who were a complete mismatch of friends he’d made along the way.

Perfect Match was different to everything else, he couldn’t ever see himself allowing someone to take over the reins. Magnus had an idealised view on love and relationships, as long as that didn’t involve him personally of course. He could look at a couple and know instantly if what they had was right or if they were mismatched. The irony that he had the worst taste in partners for himself wasn’t lost on him. After a train-wreck of a dating history Magnus was more than happy to concentrate on other people’s romantic lives, deciding that he probably wasn’t meant to settle down himself. Despite his friends pestering him often enough about his lack of a romantic life, Magnus had absolutely no intention to change things and allow anybody to create havoc on his life and routines. Up to this point nobody had questioned why the owner of New York’s premier match making service was still a bachelor.

One thing Magnus’ companies had in common was that they catered for the elite, everything was top of the line, big spenders meant he could afford to provide fantastic benefits to his employees and support various charities close to his heart. The hefty price-tag for the Perfect Match service came with a guarantee that the top two tiers would be dealt with exclusively by Magnus himself, while the initial two price points would be handled by his prodigy and right hand man, Simon Lewis.

Simon was a final year software engineering student when they first met, a chance encounter when Magnus was a guest speaker at Simons university was all it took for Magnus to decide that he had what it took to take on a project of this magnitude. Simon sort him out after the lecture and didn’t stop talking and asking questions for over an hour, leaving Magnus wondering how he didn’t pass out from the lack of oxygen as he spoke. Simon had brought the software Magnus had envisaged to life, making their dating service complete unique and unlike anything else on the market. When Magnus first detailed his hopes for Perfect Match to Simon, he could practically see the connections being formed in the younger man’s mind. They spent all night brainstorming ideas, Simon becoming ever more excited as they went along. By the time the sun came up Magnus knew that he couldn’t possibly do this with anyone else, he’d previously scoped out several highly qualified candidates but none had been able to see the project in the same way as Simon, this had been the first time Magnus thought his vision could truly come to life.

Simon had been a lot to get used to for Magnus, he didn’t trust people easily and it wasn’t often he let somebody new in. The man never stopped talking, even when he was programming he would mutter along to himself about completely random topics, pausing every now and then to get Magnus’ opinion on whatever was rattling through his brain. It wasn’t long before Magnus became used to Simons’ unending enthusiasm, and in the years they had worked on building Perfect Match they struck up an unlikely friendship that neither would trade for anything. One thing Magnus knew was that his business partner was a hopeless romantic, he had tried more times than he could count to convince him to put his own details into their system, but Simon insisted on finding his true love the old fashioned way. He threw himself into new relationships with all the enthusiasm of a puppy chasing a butterfly and no matter how many times is all went horribly wrong he’d still go into the next date with all the enthusiasm as ever before.

In the five years since their company had officially launched Magnus and Simon had attended the wedding of over 200 couples and received almost as many birth announcements from happy couples. Between them they were revolutionising dating in the 21st century.

Magnus was a perfectionist, he made it his mission in life that if he was going to do something he would do it well, otherwise he couldn’t see the point. There was no way he was going to set up a run of the mill dating service, the market was flooded with them already, all with the same clients showing each other decades old pictures, pretending they spoke three languages and liked to travel. Swearing at your housemate in three languages because it was their turn to open the door for the pizza delivery and making you do it didn’t qualify them as either multi-lingual or somebody well-travelled. Magnus wanted to take the lies out of dating, God knows he’d been lied to enough in the past. His mission was to come up with a system where the matches were based on brutal honesty, he planed to leave no stone unturned and no personality trait uncovered in his quest to find people their perfect partner.

One key difference between Perfect Match and other dating services was that the software was able to find potential matches anywhere, whether they were a client or not. It had always annoyed Magnus that dating services were limited to the finding matches based purely on the people who happened to have signed up to that particular service. Magnus or Simon would always make first contact with potential matches, the software and background check was pretty good at ruling people out who were likely to refuse an introduction. Every client who signed up to Perfect Match had to agree to a thorough online search, no stone was left unturned. It came as a surprise to many that incognito mode was no match for Simon. Any potential matches had to sign a disclaimer to say they agreed for their data to be gathered before the company delved deeper than what was freely available online, but anyone who had any form of online presence was a candidate for Perfect Match.

The hardest part of the service for many clients was the questionnaire, most people did them online, with the exception of the top tier, Magnus, and occasionally Simon did these in person. At this point in his life, pretty much nothing made him blush, he was also very adept at knowing when an answer wasn’t truthful. Usually by the time a client was a third of the way through the questionnaire they had given up the embarrassment and half-truths in favour of honesty to get the experience over with. By the end of the questionnaire Perfect Match had a fairly comprehensive profile of all their clients, any discrepancies were easily ironed out within the first few matches, it was an average of around five parings before a Perfect Match was found. Magnus didn’t take on everyone who wants to sign up, there were those where it was clear that the client wasn’t really in a place in their lives to commit to a relationship, the Perfect Match algorithms screened them out and they weren’t taken on. He didn’t want anything that would discredit his company, dishonesty on the questionnaire and previous cheating would rule someone out immediately.

Magnus scanned over the information Simon had gathered on his next potential clients, Alexander Lightwood, age 26. His background check didn’t bring up anything of concern, one report of indecent exposure at 19, an arrest but no charges for brawling with a family member at 20 and a drunk and disorderly at 23. Other than that he was clean, and while he did come from family money it looked like neither he nor his siblings had benefited from a trust fund or any assistance with collage.

Alexander Lightwood was the co-owner of LightDale, a company that he and his adopted brother, Jace Lightwood founded when they were both 15, the cyber security company had gone from strength to strength over the last decade and a quick look at the company tax returns left no doubt that the Alexander could afford the services Prefect Match had to offer. The brothers paid their own way through college while continuing to run their business which now employed over 1000 people across America and recently had offices opening internationally. Looking at their accounts they had also paid for their sisters Medical School tuition fees.

The second client he would be meeting was Jace Herondale, born and raised in New York. Jace was also 26 years old and was adopted by the lightwood family as a baby when his parents were killed in a tragic car crash. Jace had been through a colourful few years as a minor with a sealed juvenile record, followed by an arrest at 23 for assault. Other than that his records were clean, Simon would soon have a deeper background check on the pair to get a real picture of the men once they had signed the relevant paperwork of course. Jace was the co-owner of LightDale, Magnus actually had a contract with their security company across his business empire but had never met the owners himself, usually delegating working with outside contractors to his managers. Given that he was privileged with extremely intimate details of his clients he would only work with the best when it came to protecting the privacy of the information he was entrusted with. The brothers were without question at the top of their game. They were also the epitome of the target demographic for Perfect Match, affluent, busy professionals with more money than free time. It helped that the pair were blessed with good looks if there profile pictures were accurate. Magnus couldn’t help but look forward to their appointment and getting their portfolios started, working out what made the men tick and hopefully adding to his collection of wedding invites and birth announcements.

Alexander Lightwood was a mystery to many, preferring to keep his tight circle close and guarded. He grew up in circumstances that many would envy with an affluent lifestyle that few could match, appearances however could always be deceptive. His parents were extremely strict, never letting up on the expectations of their children. If Robert and Maryse Lightwood didn’t deem an activity worthy, then their children wouldn’t have been allowed to pursue it. As a child Alec loved playing the piano, it soon became clear that while he could muddle along through his lessons he was never going to be a concert pianist. The lessons were quickly stopped and the piano was only allowed to be used by his brother. It didn’t matter to his parents that Alec still enjoyed playing, his time would be far better spent on something he could excel at.

This is how life went for the Lightwood children, fun would always be sacrificed for perfection and hard work. That’s not to say that the trio didn’t find their own fun growing up, they just had to be sneaky about it. The restrictions placed upon the siblings were what ultimately lead them to the position they were in today. Alec was supposed to take over the family firm along with Jace, meeting respectable wives and having children to carry on the Lightwood empire. Isabell was supposed to study law and represent the company part time while she was a dutiful wife and mother.

Neither Alec nor Jace had any interest in the family business, and Izy would never be happy studying law, anybody who knew her new she was destined to study medicine. Her fascination with forensics went right back to their childhood. It had been made clear to the trio that family funds would not be made available for them so pursue a path of their own choosing. The boys were 14 when they started making plans to ensure their lives would not be limited by the demands of their parents. It was only a year later when they landed their first contract, it was small but allowed them to invest in their company, things snowballed from this point on. By the time their parents realised what Alec and Jace were doing the boys were 17 and had a tidy sum of money stashed away. The real sting in the tail for the Lightwood parents was learning that their sons also planned to pay for their sister to go to college, meaning she could choose to study whatever she wanted.

Free time wasn’t something Alec had the luxury of throughout most of his adult life, since he started his company while in school he’d barely had a moment to breath ever since. More often than not he could be found working alongside his adopted brother. Their chosen field was highly competitive and new innovation was constant, they were always one person’s breakthrough away from their technology being second best, which was as good as last in internet security. They has to be top of their game and remain ahead of their competitors. Relationships had never featured heavily in his plans, sure he had dated and there were a few one night stands, but a he had never found the time or the inclination for a real relationship. Work had always come first, and while he enjoyed a bit of fun as much as the next person he’d not met anyone that could hold his attention for long.

Life was different now, Alec and Jace’s company had gone from strength to strength, giving them both the opportunity to step back a little. Not that either wanted to step back at first, but their younger sister Isabell pointed out that they were going to waste the prime of their lives shut away in an office when they didn’t need to anymore. The real wakeup call was her laughing that at least they would be able to afford a hair transplant each if they waited until their 40’s to take their love-lives seriously. 

Alec and Jace had trained up a team they were proud of within the company and the pair knew that they didn’t have to micromanage everything 24/7 at this point. They were certainly well past ever needing to fall back on their parents for help or support, not that it would have been offered. Those bridges were well and truly burnt, right around three years ago when, with a straight face Robert told them it was time to liquidate their assets and fulfil their duty to the family company and reputation.

With their new found free time Jace had begun dragging Alec around bars and nightclubs with the hope that they would find someone special. While both of them had found hook-ups for an evening, neither had met anybody they wanted to swap numbers with, though not for a lack of trying on Jaces’ part. “Alec, this isn’t working, what are the odds that the people you and I are destined to spend the rest of our lives with will just happen to be at the same bar at the same time as us. At least you know you are looking for a man, I could be looking for anyone, woman or man. We need a better approach to this.”

Jace was a romantic at heart and spent more time than he would admit considering the possibility of soulmates, Alec saw himself as far more practical and less emotional than his brother. “I’m more than happy just finding someone to spend the night with, besides, I don’t think there is one person out there for me, you’ve been watching too many rom coms!”

At this point Alec was regretting confiding in his brother over a bottle of tequila, telling Jace he would like a real relationship was akin to setting him a challenge, Jace seemed determined to help Alec find Mr. Right, Alec was happy settling for Mr.Right-Now. “That’s not what you were saying a few weeks ago, I really think you should give this dating service a go, I’ve done my research and it’s the best out there.” It was only a matter of time until Alec gave in, once his brother got an idea in his head there was no derailing him. Jace had a point, Alec couldn’t remember the last proper date he went on, he hadn’t found anybody interesting enough to justify more than a few hours of his time. While he liked the idea of someone to come home to, Alec really didn’t see himself as the settling down type.

“I signed up to Grindr didn’t I? I’ve met plenty of people on there. I saw the paperwork you shoved under my nose, I don’t need to spend the income of a small country in order to get laid.” While Alec was happy to admit he needed a partner to feel physically satisfied, he was far less comfortable admitting he needed to let someone into the rest of his life. While he was incredibly close to his siblings, his parents were appalling role models for what family life could look like.

“Grindr isn’t what I meant Alec, this isn’t about a hook up, it’s about our future. I’ve made us an appointment, you are going, I’ll pay, consider it your birthday present.” Alec didn’t complain or protest, there was no point he knew he would give in to his brother. Jace would be proved wrong and then he would let the matter drop.


	2. Introductions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec and Jace visit Perfect Match HQ to meet the owners and decide if they are signing up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for beta reading this for me Denise! check out her works here. https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sian265/pseuds/Sian265

Over the course of the day Magnus had signed five new clients to Perfect Match, arranged a selection of dates and closed two files where clients had met their match. Magnus made arrangements for the dates himself, billing his clients accordingly. He planned first dates that reflected the preferences of each couple, aiming to allow his clients to relax and enjoy a shared interest. There was no ‘one date fits all’ answer where his company was concerned. 

Magnus prided himself on his customer satisfaction, every company he owned put its customers first, his staff were well looked after and in turn they looked after his clients. With the ever increasing importance people placed on social media it was essential that his reviews remained positive and that he maintained a reputation for excellence. With this in mind, Magnus and by extension Simon went out of their way to make their clients comfortable and relaxed, which was no easy task considering the amount of personal information they would be delving into. It was essential to find the right balance, they were asking a great deal of people and it took a certain skill to get people to open up about their inner most thoughts. 

Keeping Simon on track was sometimes a minefield. The man was an absolute genius, but even with a huge salary the 24 year old still tended to dress like he was 17 and lived in his mom’s basement. The main difference was that he wore his band T-Shirts paired with more expensive suit jackets and jeans these days. It was no surprise to see him turn up to the office sporting his faded Rock Solid Panda T-shirt under his navy blue Tom Ford suit, and tatty old converse to match. It didn’t matter what Simon wore or even if he forgot to brush his hair that morning, Magnus wouldn’t swap him for anyone, even if he personified a hyperactive Duracell bunny, you couldn’t help but like the man. He was kindness incarnate and didn’t have a bad bone in his body. Simon was an opposite of Magnus in almost every way, but they complemented each other and made a great team. 

Magnus made sure to always be prepared when meeting new clients, he was a natural at putting people at ease and drew people in with his warm smile, kind eyes and welcoming personality. His friends often joked he should have gone into politics but that had never really interested him. Magnus and Simon went through all the information they had been provided on Alexander and Jace Lightwood, the more they knew in advance the better. Obviously, online information didn’t give a full picture, people could craft whatever image they wanted on social media. It wasn’t often that he would get people signing up together which changed his usual dynamic somewhat. Magnus decided to bring Simon in for the meeting, his computer science background probably gave the brothers a common interest with Simon that could help put them at ease. Magnus couldn’t wait to meet them in person, they were so young to have built their company in such a competitive field. There was clearly a story behind their drive. Usually when he had clients in their 20’s they came from family money, who were funding everything. This was definitely not the case here. 

If anyone were to ask Magnus what his first impressions was of Alexander Lightwood from reading the information he had gathered and his profile picture, he’d have described him as wealthy, successful, driven, and fairly attractive. Magnus would also be relieved that those people couldn’t read his mind, Alexander was beyond attractive with his messy dark hair, pale skin and soulful hazel eyes. He would also be relieved that nobody could tell just how long he’d spent staring at those plump pink lips and imagining them contrasting against his own. Luckily for Magnus he was perfectly capable of remaining immune to a pretty face, he wasn’t in the market for a relationship and was more than capable of finding some fun for the night at his club if he so wished, ogling his clients wasn’t on the agenda, besides everyone always made sure their profile picture looked better than the reality. Alexander probably isn’t this striking in real life. 

Not for the first time, Magnus and Simon were arguing about the fact that they still hadn’t hired a receptionist, they agreed many times that they desperately needed one but neither had gotten around to doing anything about it. Simon was mumbling under his breath about always having to be the one to buzz in their clients and bring them up in the elevator. More often than not, this led to people assuming he was an intern. Magnus promised himself yet again that he would finally get around to hiring someone, if not for any other reason than to stop hearing Simon mumble on about graduating top of his class and why did he always have to be the doorman. 

Magnus was snapped out of his thoughts by Simon letting himself back into his office followed by the brothers he was so eager to meet. Simon was never what anyone would consider smooth even at the best of times, apparently today he was going above and beyond in the flustered department. The first glimpse Magnus had of the pair was of Alexander rolling his eyes at his brother Jace, who was wearing a wide grin and was quite possibly the reason behind the state Simon seemed to find himself in. This was exactly why Magnus did the majority of the face-to-face meetings, he never knew when Simon would begin to ramble. Simon managed to introduce the pair and Magnus shook each brothers hand, showing them to the informal sitting area by the full height windows.

“Please don’t mind my brother, he seems to be under the impression that you have already found him a date and sent him to bring us up to your office. My apologies for his outrageous flirting with your assistant.” Alexander said to Magnus, this only helped to increase Simons blushing and had Jace laughing out loud. 

Later, Magnus would make excuses for himself, he was just distracted, that’s why when he met Alexander’s hazel eyes, he behaved like a bumbling idiot. There really wasn’t anything all that special about Alexander Lightwood, he told himself. Magnus was 32, rich, successful and could pretty much have his pick of any of the single men or women he fancied, so there was absolutely no way that he was going to go gooey eyed and stutter just because he had a pretty boy in his office, Alec wouldn’t be the first or last attractive face that stood across from him looking for love. 

With all this in mind, Magnus couldn’t fathom why on earth his mouth was as dry as sand paper, his palms were sweating and his words were dying in his throat. Magnus was staring, looking the young man up and down, unable to tear his eyes away and pretty sure there was something he was supposed to be doing right now. He had no idea how long stood there without speaking, but he was pretty sure it was longer than was socially acceptable. 

Magnus was jolted out of his internal crisis only to be thrown again by the sound of the man’s voice. It was a perfectly normal greeting, but in that moment Magnus was pretty sure he would do anything the low, husky voice asked of him.

“…erm, I believe you are expecting us, we’ve an appointment at 5pm, I’m Alexander Lightwood, and this is my brother, Jace.” 

Magnus took a deep breath. Alexander’s voice was deep and quite possibly the sexiest thing he had ever heard. Refusing to listen to his inner demons who were questioning what that voice would sound like moaning his name, Magnus eventually managed to find his words. 

“Mr Lightwood, a pleasure to meet you, I’m all yours…I mean, I’m Magnus, Magnus Bane and my services are all yours.” It wasn’t that bad was it? There was no way Magnus had been caught stuttering and checking out a new client was there? The barely concealed laugh from Simon and discreet smirk on Alexanders face told him he absolutely had been caught checking out the young man. Simon was probably thrilled than Magnus had taken over his role of stuttering buffoon.

”I’m Jace, if either of you have noticed I’m here? I booked our appointments as an early birthday gift for my brother here.” The younger man waved a hand in the air, trying to get the attention of the other occupants. 

Luckily, for Magnus, Simon seemed to find a little composure, “I’m not his assistant by the way, we’re business partners and run this show together, I just always lose at rock, paper, and scissors and end up answering the door!” 

Magnus didn’t need to be a matchmaker to be able to tell that Jace appeared interested in Simon. What he didn’t know was if he was this brazen with everyone or if there was something in particular about Simon, the blond certainly didn’t seem to be flashing his bright smile at anyone but Magnus’s rambling partner. 

“You boast some impressive things on your website, and I have a friend of a friend who came to you and tells everyone who will listen how great this place is. We had to see for ourselves if you lived up to the claims.” Jace spoke with confidence, on the outside he was the absolute opposite of Simon, probably more like himself if he was honest, but Magnus liked to think he was capable of more subtly than the blond was showing. 

“My apologies Mr lightwood, it’s great to meet you both. It’s not often we have brothers both looking for love at the same time, I can already tell this is going to be great fun.” By this point, the four of them were sitting in comfortable chairs around a table and Simon was pouring out glasses of water for them all. 

“Please, I’m Jace, my brother goes by Alec. It’s going to get confusing if you keep referring to us both as Mr. Lightwood” Just like that the awkwardness in the room began to lift and the conversation became less awkward. 

“Okay, let’s start with what you already know about Perfect Match. Did you get chance to go through the literature Simon emailed explaining the way we work?” Magnus was on familiar territory now, comfortably recapping the information that they routinely sent out and going into more detail, including giving examples of some of the happy relationships they had helped to build. He was only mildly distracted by the Alexander, admitting to himself that he was trying to keep his focus more on the brother so he could concentrate properly. 

If Jace had been paying proper attention he would have easily noticed the quiet little looks Alec and Magnus were exchanging when they thought the other wasn’t watching. Jace however had a distraction of his own in the form of Simon Lewis, and was wondering what the company policy was on dating one of the owners. 

Objectively speaking Jace was just as good looking as his brother, and under normal circumstances if he was in a club or similar type of setting, Magnus might have taken a second glance at the blond. There was just something about Alexander that made him forget everything around him, Magnus had never lost his footing because of a pretty face. He couldn’t put his finger on what was different about the man, but he was looking forward to finding out. “I think I’ve probably talked enough for one evening. There are many reasons you should put your trust in us, the main point being that everything we do here is one hundred percent individualized. We guarantee that we will find you a perfect match or we will refund the payment in full. We have very strict and thorough procedures that filter out any Candidates that might be a waste of time, or anyone practicing deception. Do either of you have any questions at this point?” 

For the first time in a while Alec spoke up, “how does the questionnaire work, I mean, what sort of things are on it if we have to do an online profile as well?” Alec looked as if he may be unsure about the whole process at this point. 

“It’s nothing to worry about Alexander, some of the questions will be run of the mill, others might seem completely irrelevant. The big things are easy to answer online, but if you tell me you are looking for a woman with blond hair who is a non-smoker it doesn’t narrow things down much and is the type of blunt tool many of our competitors rely on. At Perfect Match we like to really get to know all our clients, trust me, we will leave no stone unturned.” Magnus tried to avoid letting clients know in advance just how personal their questions would be, it was much better to build up to that part. 

Alec’s face was flushed, he was as comfortable with himself as the next man, but couldn’t imagine sharing that much of himself with a stranger, much less somebody who looked like Magnus. “Definitely not looking for a blond woman” Alec mumbled. His mind was running away with him at the thought of the questions that might come up. 

Magnus was doing his best not to read anything into the man’s comment, he might just really not be into blonds, it didn’t have to mean that he liked men. “You can of course do the questionnaire online if you aren’t comfortable, but I really recommend coming into the office and letting me go through it with you, it really works well. I can guarantee you there is nothing I haven’t heard before, I’m not going to be shocked or make you feel uncomfortable in any way.” Alec looked like he was ready to run for the hills, luckily for Magnus, Jace could read his brother well. “I’m signing us both up to the top tier Alec, no arguments. Though if its ok with you Magnus, I want to do my questionnaire with Simon, I think you will have your hands full with Alec here.” There was a quiet relief when Magnus breathed out, as much as he told himself that Alec was just another client, he didn’t want the man to walk out the door never to return. He clearly felt that he could really help Alexander find his perfect match.

Simon seemed to be having a crisis of his own, “erm, I really don’t normally do the questionnaires, I normally get people set up who are completing them themselves and then check through for clarifications.” Magnus was quick to assure Jace that if he wanted Simon to ask him the questions then that’s what would happen. “…after all, it’s all about client comfort at the end of the day, right Simon?” the only response he could manage was a nod of his head while blushing furiously, after all, Simon knew exactly what questions he would be asking.

Simon returned to the office after showing the brothers out to find Magnus pouring two rather large glasses of scotch on the rocks, “I don’t know about you Simon, but I need a drink and I’m not drinking alone.” For the first time in his life Simon polished his whisky off in one shot and pushed his glass to Magnus for a refill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, I'd love to know what you think.


	3. All about Alec

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec visits Perfect Match and completes his questionnaire with Magnus.

Alec should have made a morning appointment with Magnus, he had no idea what was he thinking deciding to go to Perfect Match in the evening. He spent the whole day wondering what he was going to have to reveal about himself. As much as he tried to concentrate on his work nothing could distract him from the fact that he was going to be grilled about himself. That wasn’t even the worst part! Magnus was probably the most beautiful man he’d ever met. He’d be lying if he said thoughts of the man’s caramel skin and smooth voice hadn’t entered his mind over the last week. With the exception of with his siblings he rarely talked about his private life, and then it was mostly because his sister was an over-sharer and liked to grill him in return. 

He couldn’t imagine why he’d let Jace steamroller him into this, Alec would have been much happier filling out a form online if he was going to do this at all, there hadn’t seemed much point arguing. Jace has all the subtly of a sledgehammer and was clearly interested in Simon. When he asked if he could fill in his form with him instead it was obvious to everyone in the room that he would be using it as an excuse to flirt with the talkative nerd. There was no way Jace would have left without making sure he would see Simon again. Jace had been talking about him on and off all week and Alec hadn’t hesitated to pull his leg on the matter. Jace had countered with the line that at least he had ‘game’ as opposed to Alec who just blushed and mumbled when confronted by a pretty face. 

Alec blamed the butterflies in his stomach on the questions he was about to be asked rather than the thought of seeing Magnus again. As before, Simon greeted them in the lobby and escorted the pair to the top floor in the lift. Jace was practically buzzing with anticipation, Simon looking anywhere but at Jace. Alec tentatively opened the door and with as much confidence as he could muster took a step inside. “Get comfortable Alexander, this will take a while.” Alec stiffly took a seat in front of Magnus’ desk, he felt much younger than his years, almost like being summoned to the head teachers office in his school days. Simon escorted Jace off to his own office and the pair were left alone. 

Magnus exuded more confidence than anyone Alec had ever met before, he was so at ease with himself. Just before sitting down Magnus removed his suit jacket and hung it on the back of his chair, Alec prided himself on the fact that he didn’t drool. It was obvious at their last meeting that Magnus looked after himself, but now wearing a perfectly fitting white shirt it was obvious just how fit the match-maker was. Alec could see his toned physique through his shirt, the material stretching in all the right places. He had no idea how he was going to get through this without embarrassing himself. 

A small smile and raised eyebrow briefly crossed Magnus’ face as he spotted the other man appraising him as he took a seat, he couldn’t help the thrill that ran through him at Alexander’s reaction. “I’ll be honest Alexander, I was so pleased when you confirmed your appointment, it felt a little like your brother pushed you into it, and the only way this works is if you are open to it. I also much prefer doing the questionnaire face to face, it’s far easier to tell when an answer is honest if you can look someone in the eye, don’t you think?” Magnus said, straightening papers on his desk.

Alec took a deep breath, ’there is no reason to nervous,’ he silently repeated to himself. He was an accomplished adult, used to taking charge. His company had made more money than he could spend in a lifetime, so there was no reason for this to bother him, and if he didn’t like it, there was nothing stopping him from just getting up and leaving. 

“I’ll admit, Jace gave me a push, but honestly it’s the push I needed. Sometimes I over think things. I’m happy to answer your questions, whatever you want to know, I’ve no reason to lie.” Alec believed his words the moment he spoke them, he couldn’t imagine looking at the other man and being anything other than completely honest. 

Magnus didn’t imagine for a moment that anyone who has passed through this office had ever been truly honest, not about everything. He highly doubted that Alexander Lightwood would be the first, as long as there were no outright lies he could work with what he was given. “I’m going to start the recording now, Simon will transcribe everything later on, that way our conversation can flow more naturally.”

Alec wondered, how invasive could this questionnaire possibly be, Favourite restaurant, colour, sports teams…that was all pretty standard on a dating site wasn’t it? He wasn’t relishing the idea of Simon listening to the recording, but he was here now, he might as well just get on with it. 

The two men sat in comfortable chairs across from each other as if they were old friends meeting for a coffee to catch up. “Could you start by telling me your sexual orientation please Alec, usually a pretty good starting point on matters of the heart.” Magnus asked.

“Er…Gay, 100% gay.” It was a long time since Alec had left the closet, from then onwards he had never made any attempt to hide his sexuality. There was just something about the way Magnus asked him, so forthright, it almost made Alec feel he was naked and under a microscope. He had a feeling that there was no way he was getting out of this office with any of his secrets intact. 

Magnus was determined to ignore the little thrill he got as Alec stated he liked men, there was no way it made him hot under the collar, it was probably just too warm in his office. “We are just at the beginning Alec, let me know if you need to take a break at any point, if there is anything you aren’t comfortable telling me, just speak up, but the more you tell me, the more accurate your matches will be. Nobody but Simon and I will ever see this information.” Magnus was warm and reassuring and Alec had no doubt about how good he was at his job. 

Just as Alec thought, the next 30 minutes were spent going over food, sports teams, work hours, Alec honestly wasn’t convinced all this detail was needed, how on earth was his preference for noodles over rice going to find him his perfect partner. Never the less, his short one or two word answers slipped into short explanations, by the time they got onto the subject of favourite foods Alec was practically delivering a master class on the comparison between going for a Michelin star meal over a decent bacon cheeseburger from his favourite food cart and how it was a complete impossibility to choose one over the other, it all came down to the circumstances. Magnus was also subjected to a rather passionate lecture on the inaccuracies of Jurassic park, trying and failing to stifle his laughter at the accompanying dinosaur impressions and was completely mystified as to how they got onto the topic in the first place. 

“As you know we do a background check on everyone applying to Perfect Match, there were a couple of things which came up I would like to check with you if that’s okay?” Unable to read his expression, Magnus was unsure if the other man would divulge the incidents he was asking about. 

A small smile crept across Alec’s face, “I’m guessing you are referring to my extensive criminal past” the was Alec was licking his bottom lip and trying to hide a smile leading Magnus to wonder what those lips tasted like. “When I was 20 I discovered my dad was having an affair, he’d spent my entire childhood preaching about the importance of my behaviour and holding up the Lightwood name, we ended up in a huge row. I only punched him once, but there were people around and the police got called.” 

“The other incident you probably have in your file was the ‘family dinner’ Robert arranged a few years ago. He expected Jace and I to liquidate our multi-million dollar company and come work for the family firm, and while we were at it take a look at a list he had of potential respectable wives. I coped with the meal by drinking as much as I possibly could. Jace went one step further and landed daddy dearest with his second broken nose. We were in a fancy restaurant and once again the police got called.” Alec looked slightly lost in thought, “We aren’t a violent family Magnus, its hard to explain our childhood and from the outside looking in, it probably looked idyllic, unfortunately that was far from the truth. We don’t really have any contact with them now and that suite us all.”

It took everything Magnus had not to go hug the man, “I completely understand Alexander, and I certainly wouldn’t judge you. I’ve met Robert and Maryse Lightwood myself in the past and very quickly made the decision not to have and further business dealings with them, I wont deal with people who clearly can’t see past their own prejudice.” Alec was visibly more relaxed but Magnus wanted to lighten the mood a little more before continuing. “You missed something else though, there was a third incident when you were a little younger, does that ring any bells?”

The younger man could help but let out a full belly laugh at that, “We can blame my sister for that one, a little alcohol, a game of truth or dare and I found myself running naked through the fountains in the park. At some point I should learn to keep my indiscretions private, three lapses of judgment and law enforcement was there for all of them.” The ice was well and truly broken between the pair at this point and they were both laughing over Alec’s misfortune. 

Magnus found himself completely mesmerised by the other man. What had started as a very stunted question and answer session, had turned into a dissertation of one Alexander Gideon Lightwood, and once he started talking there was no stopping him it seemed. “Okay, are you happy for us to move on to some more personal questions?” Alec replied with a nod and smile.

I’ll start gently and work up to the big questions, how old were you when you had your first kiss?”

Alec had completely stopped over thinking things, even though it was a pretty one sided conversation he found himself completely at ease with the other man and was more than happy to give him whatever information he requested, Magnus had a way of making him feel like this was a conversation rather than an interrogation. “My first real kiss, I was 16, because we are not counting that whole kissing debacle with Jessica when I was 15 and figuring out what I wanted. Let’s just say Magnus, if I didn’t know I was gay before then, I was damn sure afterwards.” Magnus tried not to laugh at the statement, but the words combined with the look of absolute horror on Alec’s face as he recalled the memory was too much and he found himself laughing as if he was exchanging stories with an old friend. There was just something about Alexander that drew him in, Magnus didn’t need to question how Alec had become so successful at such a young age. He had a way of looking at the world that was completely unique to him. He brought people into his world and got them invested in his vision when he spoke. There was a lot more to Alexander Lightwood than just a pretty face.

“When was your last long term relationship?” Alec scrunched his face up at this question, clearly searching his memories for the answer. “I think…a couple of years ago, it didn’t really last long. We weren’t really compatible I guess. I’ve been busy since, not really had time for any commitment, until now that is” Alec looked up directly into Magnus’ eyes as he spoke and it felt like he was looking directly into Magnus’ soul. 

All Magnus needed was to get through the rest of this questionnaire without making a fool of himself, remembering the questions to come he soon realised that this would be easier said than done, part of him wished he could skip the really personal questions, the other part of him was on the edge of his seat waiting for answers. They ran through the rest of the mundane relationship questions and were moving on to the tough ones. “How often do you masturbate?” 

Alec tried his damnest to not look like a rabbit caught in headlights. It was a long time since he was a nervous teen and he certainly wasn’t shy these days, however, there was just something about the beautiful man opposite him that had him blushing like his 17 year old self watching porn for the first time. Speaking with more confidence than he felt, “Most mornings in the shower, unless I’m really running late, but honestly my day is way more productive if I’m not distracted, you know how it is.” Magnus was pretty sure this interview was going to be his undoing, just the thought of the man opposite him in the shower was doing funny things to him. 

Snapping himself out of Alec’s hypnotic gaze, “Ever had a fuck buddy, or friend with benefits?”

Alec was truly relaxed at this point, Magnus was clearly not judging him and he found himself quite enjoying the interrogation. “Kind of, nothing too long-term, I’m not opposed to the idea, but worry that agreeing to no strings with somebody I like, even just as a friend would end up messy at some point. If you are already friends, and physically attracted to someone at least one of you is going to get hurt if the other wants to make it more.”

The questionnaire wasn’t going the way Magnus had expected. He hadn’t prepared himself for the confidence the other man showed and the comfort with which he expressed his answers. “Do you enjoy casual sex? One night stands?”

Without a pause for thought Alec replied “That’s a yes, defiantly, great for stress relief, don’t you think? I mean when you are busy a hook-up can really scratch an itch, also there is no worrying about heart break on either side if you don’t know each other.”

Not for the first time tonight Magnus was relieved that Simon would only get a voice recording of this session, he would never live the blushing down. “Top, bottom or switch?” Magnus asked. 

Alec, unprepared for such a question to be thrown out so casually, choked on the sip of water he had taken, was it his imagination, or was Magnus also slightly red-faced? The younger man mumbled out, “Wow, you ask a lot of detail…switch for sure.”

Magnus glanced down at his notes, he really didn’t need the reminder of his list of questions, but it gave him a brief pause to compose himself. “Moving on, next describe your ideal partner.”

Alec looked thoughtful, “You know, I never really thought I had a type particularly. I definitely need someone who will challenge me, we have to be intellectually compatible, there is no point if you can’t have a decent conversation at the end of the day. On a more superficial level I’m attracted to men who work out, physicality is important to me, I do a lot of martial arts and it would be great to share that with a partner.”

Dark eyes that I can get lost in, tanned skin, probably slightly shorter than me, abs are a must. Though that’s probably getting too specific.” Alec looks lost in thought at this point. “Someone who is as comfortable being the life of the party as they are curling up on the sofa watching Netflix. I want us to be able to work out together but also be able to shut ourselves away for the weekend and never leave the sofa or bed. I’m not a great social butterfly, I’d like my partner to contrast me in that respect, someone to help bring me out of myself. If he was too similar to me we’d never end up talking or experiencing new things” 

Once Alec started talking about his ideal man he couldn’t stop. “Oh, and yeah…they have to switch, life is way too short to not do it all. Erm, the sex thing is probably the most important. We have to be compatible that way, otherwise it’s just not going to work in the long run. I like sex Magnus, and I’ve got no idea how you will know if my perfect match likes sex as much as I do, but this just isn’t going to work if they want the same position three times a week with the lights off.”

He continued. “I mean, it doesn’t need to be perfect right away, I’m not expecting that. However, I love learning what my partners like, experimenting together, you must know what I mean Magnus? There must be something that you can’t live without, imagine if you dated me and I couldn’t find your prostate! I dated this guy for a month once, I didn’t mind that he couldn’t find it at first, but bloody hell, he didn’t even want to look, can you imagine living like that Magnus!”

Magnus was a professional, there was absolutely no way that he was wondering how compatible he and Alec were at this point. It wasn’t his fault that he was imagining Alec being pretty adept at finding his prostate. Magnus forced himself to focus on Alec’s face not his fingers

“Ok, I’m sure you are just going to tell me I’m expecting too much at this point, but he can’t agree with me on everything, because where’s the fun in that. I’m not saying I want blazing arguments, but there has to be room in life for a little bit of healthy debate.” Alec mused aloud.

By the time they have finished going through the questionnaire Magnus felt like he was going to explode. Never had he felt the need to jerk off quite as much as he did right at that moment, there is no way he could possibly stand up to shake the man’s hand without showing just how unprofessional his train of thought had gotten over the last two hours. It was his own fault really. Magnus asked for as many details as possible, at no point in the five years he has been doing this did anyone go into detail about the way they love to give blowjobs, and that there was nothing better in life than that first taste of pre-come on his tongue, or how he had no gag reflex. “Did you know Magnus, I’ve never found a dick I couldn’t swallow the whole way down.” Just the memory of the words made Magnus shudder. Alec had then spent the next 10 minutes talking about the details of personal grooming and its importance if he was going to have a decent sex life. “…there is absolutely nothing sexy about having to stop to spit out a hair just when you are getting to the good part.”

The questions were finished and Magnus was proud of the way he’d dealt with things, he hadn’t embarrassed himself too much and Alec was so invested in passing on every conceivable detail that he probable never noticed how flustered Magnus was. Alec was just about to leave when he turned back from the door. “Sex toys Magnus!” Alec exclaimed as if he’d forgotten to pass on the secrets of the universe. “I can’t believe you didn’t remind me to tell you about Sex toys, you almost let me forget.” 

Half an hour into the sex toy conversation and Magnus was pretty sure he was going to come in his pants just from hearing Alec go into intricate detail about the importance of selecting just the right size butt plug for his partner, I mean it had to be smaller than his own length otherwise the main event could be a let-down, but it had to be big enough that they knew it was there throughout the day. Magnus found himself thinking that there is no way this man was going to let anyone down during sex. He likes sex toys as much as the next man, especially given how long he’d been single for but had never thought about them in quite as much detail as Alexander clearly had. 

In the five years he’d had this office, he had never done anything inappropriate in the workplace. That went out of the window within minutes of Alec leaving the building, thank god he remembered to turn off the recording prior to getting himself off at his desk, that definitely wasn’t something Simon needed to know about. 

Once Alec was outside in the fresh air he took a moment to check his phone, just one message from Jace, How did you get on? I ‘ll catch up tomorrow, we decided to finish my questionnaire at my place ;) ;) Alec laughed quietly to himself, no surprises there, Jace had gone to Perfect Match with one aim tonight. He couldn’t quite believe how easy it had been to talk to Magnus, maybe he should take a leaf out of his brothers book.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this one! Let me know what you thought. Thank you Sian265 for beta reading again for me.


	4. Conversations with friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec and Jace get some morning exercise, Magnus and Simon catch up over lunch. I wonder what topics are on the agenda?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you do much Denise, I struggled with this one and deleted the entire chapter twice. I'm so relieved to be posting something I'm happy with. Couldn't have done it without you.

If there was one thing Alec hadn’t been expecting, it was for his brother to be outside his apartment for their normal 5.30 am run. It had been their weekday routine ever since they bought separate homes, Izzy had insisted that they needed to live like proper grownups and couldn’t live and work together at their age. Alec and Jace would jog through the park while chatting about anything and everything. The last mile was an all-out sprint, finishing up at their favourite gym. They would generally hit the showers after a round of sparing at about 7.30, get changed and grab some breakfast before walking the short distance to their office. It wasn’t lost on either man that some of their best ideas had been born during their morning exercise ritual, their competitive spirit in full flow and the banter never ending.

  


After the text Jace had sent the previous night, Alec presumed he’d be on his own this morning. Seeing Jace outside doing his warm-up looking fresh as a daisy shouldn’t have been that much of a surprise in retrospect, his brother no doubt wanted to tell Alec about his night. There was no hiding the smile on the blonds face, clearly eager to let Alec know how his evening had gone. “I really didn’t expect you to be here after your text last night.” Alec said, starting his warm-up also.

  


Jogging alongside each other, Jace’s face bore a slight flush and a grin, people who didn’t know him would assume he was smug, Alec knew better, his brother was in a good mood. “How did your appointment with Magnus go?” Jace asked. Alec was just about the only person, except for maybe their sister who could tell that Jace was slightly nervous.

  


Alec shook his head, “We’ll get to me later, what happened in your meeting, did you really take Simon home?” Jace clearly needed a gentle push to talk about the evenings events.

  


They were barley jogging above walking pace at this point, the conversation becoming more important than the exercise as had happened so often in the past. “We started the questionnaire, Simon could barely look me in the eye, he was blushing like a tomato. When he asked me what my type was I caught his eye and said ‘you’ you should have seen the look on his face Alec, he tried to move on to the next question.” Jace was grinning, clearly happy with the response he’d gotten out of Simon.

  


“At that moment I said that I wasn’t going to join their agency, initially he looked crestfallen, that is until I asked him out on a date instead.”

  


Jace continued, “Honestly I couldn’t see the point in going through with it when he was right there in front of me. Simon said that this had never happened before and while he and Magnus didn’t have a policy on dating potential clients he would have to talk to his business partner.” Luckily, for Alec his brother was so engrossed in his story he failed to spot the flush of embarrassment at the mention of Magnus.

  


“Simon did however agree to get a coffee with me as I was his last appointment of the day, it turns out he doesn’t live to far from me. We walked back to mine as I wanted to try out my new coffee machine…”

  


Even if Alec didn’t know his brother better than he knew himself he would have known that was just a line. “Jace you’ve had that thing two years, you make better coffee than Starbucks.” If there was one thing Jace was evangelical about it was his coffee. He liked different drinks for different moods and occasions. He would always know what Alec would want based on his body language; it was no surprise that he was putting his barrister skills to good use in his dating life too.

  


“I didn’t lie, we did finish the questionnaire back at mine, just not the one he had planned. We talked, for hours, I walked him home after several coffees and got a brief kiss on the cheek. Honestly, Alec the man is incredible, he can talk forever and rambles when he’s nervous. There is just something about him. He is going to talk to Magnus later today and if it’s all good we will be going out for our first date tomorrow night.”

  


Alec gave his brother an enthusiastic pat on the back “I’m really happy for you Jace, but I hope you know what you are doing, if it all goes horribly wrong you can’t go back to Perfect Match to find you someone else.” From the look on his face, Jace clearly hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Let’s hope we don’t have to go find you the second best dating service in Manhattan!”

  


Jace smiled, “There is just something about him, I’m going to take my time and get this right.” That said, he sped up to normal jogging speed leaving Alec to catch up with him.

  


Alec was relieved that Jace became too distracted to go back to the topic of his meeting with Magnus. He didn’t know what happened to him in there, but once he started talking he couldn’t stop. Had he really sat there and told a perfect stranger that while he had never tried BDSM he wasn’t opposed to the idea? Telling him that he had just never been in a relationship that gave the required level of trust to go there. Something in the back of his mind was screaming at him to shut up, but the overriding need to share everything with Magnus had won out.

  


That’s what he’d been there for, and Magnus did say the more information he gave the better, right? If there was a nagging part of him that wished they met in different circumstances he wasn’t about to admit it, even to himself. Alec had spent long enough during his adolescence thinking he would never have the opportunity to live the life he wanted, but here he was doing a job he loved, surrounded by his family and there was nothing stopping him having a real relationship and family of his own. Even though Jace had to push him into signing up, Perfect Match was an opportunity for him to find his own happiness and he wasn’t going to give that up for anything.

  


  


  


It was around lunchtime when Simon made his way into Magnus’ office, armed with coffee and sandwiches, the other man had been surprisingly quiet throughout the morning. “We have two things to talk about, and the both end in Lightwood, I’m going to let you pick if we talk about Jace or Alec first.” Simon set their lunch down on the table and the pair took their customary seats and unwrapped their food. There weren’t many days that went by where Simon and Magnus didn’t get lunch together when they were working, they had fallen into their own ritual over the years, a meal overlooking the city was one of their favourites, no matter how hectic the day they always took time for a catch up.

  


Magnus had spent all morning gearing up for Simon’s reaction to the recording and at the same time pretending there was nothing abnormal about his meeting with Alexander Lightwood. A big part of him hoped that Simon would take a few days to get to the recording. Unfortunately for him, it seemed his friend was as timely as ever. Trying to hide the hesitance in his voice Magnus spoke, “You’ve been through the recording I take it?”

  


Simon was grinning like a Cheshire cat, his own inner turmoil temporarily hidden by his friend’s embarrassment. “Yep…so choose your Lightwood, whose profile are we going through first?” To Simon’s utter dismay Magnus opted to hear about Jace first. No matter how much he went over the conversation in his head he had no clue what was going to come out of his mouth next. “It’s nothing really, but the short version is that Jace decided he isn’t going to sign up to Perfect Match.” Magnus raised his eyebrow knowing that there was going to be far more to the story, “…and the long version?”

  


Simon was blushing furiously, his smugness from earlier vanishing completely. “I don’t know what to say Magnus, we were going through the questions exactly as they are set out. He was flirty just like when we met him the first time, I remained professional and tried to keep everything on track.” This had to be the first time in all their years knowing each other that Simon struggled to get his words out. Normally there was nothing that would stop him talking until he was quite literally breathless. Magnus sat back giving Simon all the time he needed to tell the rest of the story. “It was completely out of the blue, he carried on flirting, but was answering everything I asked when all of a sudden he decided he wasn’t joining our books. I asked him why and tried to find out what the problem was when he, er…he asked me on a date instead.” Simon went on to describe how the rest of the evening, and assured Magnus that he wouldn’t answer Jace until after this conversation, “So what do you think Magnus? We never really talked about this kind of situation.”

  


It was clear to Magnus that Simon was extremely nervous right now. He knew that his friend wanted his blessing. Simon knew what Perfect Match meant to Magnus, it had become just as important to Simon during the years he had been working on the project. Simon wouldn’t be in his office having this conversation if he didn’t think Jace could be someone important. “The part of me that would normally tease you right now isn’t going to say anything. I trust your judgement Simon, you don’t work for me, those days are long gone. We are equals here, I really appreciate you coming to me over this, and of course you have my blessing.”

  


Simon let out the breath he didn’t realise he had been holding. “Thanks Magnus, I just didn’t want you to think I had crossed any professional boundaries and lost us any business.” They both knew it wouldn’t have mattered anyway, Perfect Match didn’t sign up anyone who was interested in someone already. It wouldn’t be fair to anyone to make any introductions when one party was actively interested in someone else. They did everything they could to ensure they weren’t setting anybody up for unnecessary heartbreak.

  


Several minutes went by, the pair sharing a comfortable silence while they ate their lunch. Simon was feeling visibly more relaxed knowing that he hadn’t let Magnus down so he let his mind wander to the thought of a date with Jace, more than a little giddy at the prospect. 

  


Magnus shuffled in his seat, Simon very quickly spotting his discomfort. “Your interview with Alec made for amusing listening. After our first meeting with him I wasn’t even convinced he would come back, let alone be quite so…er, thorough with his answers.” Magnus had to laugh, that was one way to look at it.

  


“Magnus, I’ve got the preliminary results back for Alec’s matches. I have a good list to get started on with narrowing them down. I think I will be ready for us to start making contact with potential matches by the end of the week if you want me to proceed?”

  


Simon was clearly holding something back, “What do you mean if I want you to proceed? Why wouldn’t I?”

  


“There is one potential match already on our database, right in the sweet-spot with a with almost prefect ratios of personality traits, physical compatibility and world views.” Simon continued. Usually Magnus could bring himself to find Simon’s rambling endearing, this wasn’t one of those times and he wished he would just get to the point.

  


“There is still something you aren’t telling me Si, its great that we have a possibly match in the system, just add him to your list, who is it? I know more or less all our clients.” Magnus tried not to let his impatience show.

  


Simon took a deep breath, “Do you remember back when we were first testing the system, and refining the questionnaire? We paid students to sign up so we could see how everything ran with real answers, we also added our own information.”

  


Magnus laughed nervously not liking where the conversation was heading. “Simon, you are already planning a date with one Lightwood, are you about to tell me you are a match with his brother? Because that’s just awkward!” The younger man gave Magnus a knowing glare, Simon could tell that his friend had understood exactly what he was meaning.

  


“Not me Magnus, can you really not see where I’m going with this?” Magnus didn’t want to let himself see where Simon was going, there had never been a time when he had considered using his own company to find love. Even if he had been looking for it, there is no way either himself or Simon could be impartial enough to input their own data and stay detached enough to find an unbiased match. They knew where all the algorithms they had written led, not only did the computer software analyse what was said, but the voice analyser Simon worked a little like a lie detector and could pick up hidden truths and meanings. Their knowledge of the way the system worked wouldn’t allow them to give unbiased answers as they would be taking into consideration how the results could be interpreted.

  


The pair knew that with all the best intentions in the world that in trying to stay neutral they would both unintentionally try and lead the system to find the results they thought they wanted rather than a genuine Perfect Match for them both. Magnus had to laugh at himself over that one, his subconscious never steered him right, he had a habit of picking absolutely the worst partners for himself.

  


“I can’t believe you didn’t delete our information. First you know I’m not looking for anything serious. Then there is the fact that it’s a really old version of the questionnaire, we have made a lot of revisions and tweaks since then so it can’t be accurate. Finally, we were blind drunk by the time we finished putting our information in. You absolutely cannot expect it to find a match based on information given when we had spent several hours with a bottle of Jack Daniels and several of his lesser known friends.”

  


Magnus didn’t know if he should be furious at Simon for believing this was a possibility or if he should just laugh. Either way there was no way he was planning to take it seriously. With some trepidation Simon replied, “You seem to be forgetting Magnus, I listened to the recording, I heard exactly how affected you were by the man, there is also nothing quite as honest as a drunk man with his best friend. I had a look through my answers, they remain true, subtleties have changed as they will for anyone over the years but the information remains accurate. You and Alec are a near perfect match, if this was anyone else you would already be planning introductions”

  


Magnus was indignant at this point, “I’m asking for you to disregard this ‘Match’, it isn’t accurate, it’s based on the old, drunken ramblings of a younger me and neither of us would ever consider interviewing someone under the influence of alcohol. Please also delete my information from the system Simon.” Simon sighed in resignation, there was no way he was going to push his friend on this right now. Magnus clearly not going to go there. “I will get started this afternoon on Alec’s profile and matches, you have to admit one thing though, you were affected by him, that was the funniest interview I have ever listened to.”

  


Magnus had to laugh “Did you hear what he was saying Simon? He went into explicit detail on how he likes to be kissed and nibbled down to his V line, and how many of his tattoos were in places he found especially sensitive. Followed by, a comprehensive explanation on how important giving proper attention to a blow job was, telling me that it was an absolute crime that so many men paid such little attention to their partners balls and rim during the act.” Magnus was pretty sure those words were etched into his mind for the rest of time.

Magnus looked as flustered as he had sounded on the recording. “I only saw one tattoo Simon, you aren’t telling me you wouldn’t have been wondering exactly where the others were. There is no man alive who wouldn’t have been affected by all that information. Plus, you have eyes, you’ve seen him right?” Magnus knew he was attracted to the man, without a doubt if they met in a club they would have gone home together and probably has the best sex of his life. Providing Alexander wasn’t all talk, and given how animated and enthusiastic he was during their conversation and the importance he placed on the ‘lost art of the quick hand-job’ Magnus couldn’t imagine he was all talk. He could remember the man’s voice in vivid detail.

  


“ _Just because its quick Magnus, doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be incredible. A hand-job should leave a man breathless, satisfied and begging for more, a bit like an appetiser, it gives you a hint about what’s to come_.”

  


The simple fact was that Alec and Magnus didn’t meet in a club, they met in his place of work and the man was looking for love, something that Magnus wasn’t prepared to entertain. “Seriously Simon, we couldn’t be more incompatible. I should be questioning your judgement as a matchmaker right now. Please make sure you delete my questionnaire from our system and lets speak no more about this. Alec is looking for a serious committed relationship and we are going to do everything we can to find him one”

  


The next few weeks would be spent narrowing down Alec’s matches, contacting them and going through all the due diligence an operation like this required. It was no small task finding the small handful of people, one of whom who a person could potentially spend the rest of their lives with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter picks up after Alec's first date. Does anyone think it will go well? Either way I'm sure he will spare no details in relaying the date to Magnus.


	5. Awkward first date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec recounts his awkward first date to Magnus.

Magnus ran a gambit of emotions today and couldn’t pinpoint the reason for his fluctuating mood. He and Simon had spent the last two weeks matching Alec with a list of potential candidates and compiling a list of possible dates for him. Magnus had thrown himself into the task with everything he had, he wanted to make sure Alec had an incredible selection of bachelors to chose from.

. The initial selection at Perfect Match was down to Simon and his computer programme. He would use the information they obtained regarding their client’s background search and questionnaire to create their master list. . Usually Simon would do this alone and bring the selection to Magnus to look over, but for some reason he kept coming and asking Magnus to clarify certain details regarding the questionnaire. Between this and his first date with Jace, Simon was driving him mad. As a result, Magnus was being far snappier than his friend deserved. 

It turned out the brash blond was quite the romantic at heart, knowing that they shared a love for music, Jace had taken him to a piano bar where they had both taken to the stage at one point, Simon playing a modern piece of his own composition. Jace playing classical music with the grace and depth of a master of the craft. Followed by a slow walk home via a hot dog cart, Jace gave him a soft kiss goodnight after walking Simon to his door. The dreamy look on his face over the week that followed was driving Magnus nuts, apparently they were taking things slow and really getting to know each other. Magnus loved a budding new romance, he wouldn’t be a professional matchmaker if he didn’t, but he could honestly do without it right now. It just reminded him of his own lack of romantic prospects? While Magnus was incredible at matchmaking he seemed to lack the same careful judgment when it came to his own love life, he was happy with the way his life was right now.

The next hiccup came when Simon finally stopped questioning him and brought the preliminary list of Alec’s matches through for him to approve. If the loved up expression Simon had been walking around with for the last week wasn’t enough, the smug expression he now had when placing a list of 100 names and headshots in front of Magnus was the icing on the cake.

“Take your time looking through them Magnus, I’ll be in my office when you want to talk about it..” Glancing down at the paper, the first name on the list in bold capitals read ‘MAGNUS BANE’ accompanied with a cheesy photo where his grin was slightly too wide and he was giving a thumbs up to the camera.

Before Simon had managed to get to out of the office door Magnus was yelling “Very funny Simon, I thought I told you to delete my profile, why the hell didn’t you?” He was absolutely furious, and if this was a joke he didn’t find if funny in the slightest. It wasn’t that Magnus wasn’t attracted to Alec, quite frankly he couldn’t understand why anyone wouldn’t be attracted to the man, and so what if he featured rather heavily in one or two dreams since they met. If Magnus happened to think of Alec in the shower it was nobody’s business but his own. Alec had come to perfect Match looking for love, not a hook-up, which is all Magnus would have to offer.

Simon looked far too pleased with himself for a man who was being yelled at and who Magnus was going to ensure would miss out on his favourite pastries this lunch time and have to go hungry. “That’s the funny part Magnus, I deleted every word of both our questionnaires, not a trace of them remained. The system matched you completely independently based on all our usual criteria. I’ll be honest, I was desperately trying to find an error, that’s why I kept coming back to check information with you, I knew you would be pissed at me so wanted to be sure first.” Simon left the office without another word, knowing that his friend would deal with this in his own way.

It was a rare thing for Magnus to be rendered speechless, clearly dating Jace had turned Simon stupid and he must have neglected to undo his previous mess properly. Crossing out his own name with more force than was strictly necessary, Magnus decided he was going to ignore Simon for the rest of the day and work on Alec’s matches on his own. The attraction he felt for Alec was purely physical and he didn’t need Simon trying to convince him otherwise.

Magnus had been so pleased with the preliminary selection he just knew Alec would find his Perfect Match in the mix, he had never quite been so invested in how one of his clients first dates had gone and couldn’t wait for him to come into the office after he had finished work. Simon was heading off with Jace for the evening, no doubt for some sickeningly lovey-dovey, taking it slowly, hand holding, romantic adventure which Magnus would be regaled with in the morning. Mixed in of course with torments about how Magnus himself had been a perfect match with Alec, because Simon would not let that go? Maybe Magnus hadn’t been the best company recently and ever so slightly snappy and sarcastic, the pair had bickered on and off all week. He should probably make it up to Simon, after all everyone makes mistakes and he can’t stay mad at him forever.

An all inclusive weekend stay for him and Jace in his flagship hotel and spa should do the job, and maybe if he helped get Simon laid, he would have something to focus on that wasn’t Magnus’s none existent love life.

One didn’t need an expert in body language to tell that Alec’s date hadn’t gone well, the way he walked into the office and slumped into the chair opposite Magnus with a mumbled greeting told Magnus all he needed to know.

“What happened? I had a good feeling about you and Ben.” Magnus asked. He had spent hours poring over profiles of potential matches. There were some incredible men in the mix, though unusually they had all felt sub-par. Magnus would usually save his favourite candidate for the third match. By that point, any nervousness about using the system would normally have passed and the couple could really enjoy their date.

Magnus had an overactive imagination, he liked to visualise his couples, how their interactions would go and how they would look together. With Alec it was different, he had spent plenty of time making sure their interests matched, all the men he had selected were objectively extremely good looking. Magnus would have to be blind to miss how attractive Alec was, any potential partner would need to be equally striking, something Magnus had decided was easier said than done. Simon had completely lost the will to live at the point where Magnus was complaining that the Tom Ford model who had been shortlisted wasn’t hot enough to date Alec.

Ben had his own tech company, loved the outdoors, hiking in the mountains and volunteered one day a week at a local animal shelter. He had model good looks and Magnus would certainly have looked twice at him in a club. He should be perfect for Alec as they had so many shared interests, there was just something he couldn’t put his finger on that was missing, which given the expression on Alec’s face he had been right and he should have trusted his instincts. 

Alec looked up at Magnus through his dark lashes, looking utterly dejected. “I think your software malfunctioned Magnus. That date was the worst.” Nobody had ever come back to him after one of his dates saying that, granted they didn’t all go perfectly but none had ever been truly dreadful.

“Maybe you could tell me a bit about what wasn’t working for you, so we can see where things went wrong.” Magnus asked.

“He was attractive, I’ll give him that much. I can see why you picked him. Being honest though, right from the minute I met him I knew it wasn’t going to work. I don’t know why but he obviously wasn’t going to be anyone significant in my life. Something was just missing. I tried to dismiss my reservations and give the guy a chance.”

_How could Perfect Match have got this one so wrong. Magnus wondered._

“We started off with the usual pleasantries, spoke about work and hobbies, about 20 minutes into the date we had pretty much run out of things to talk about. Almost from the start something didn’t feel quite right, conversation was stunted and awkward.” Alec continued.

That was so much worse than Magnus had thought, the usual pattern when a match didn’t work out was because there was no spark, he’d never to his knowledge set up two people who couldn’t even manage a pleasant evening together. “So your date only lasted 20 minutes? I’m so sorry Alexander, I’m going to go through the paperwork and see where I went wrong.” Ben obviously wasn’t good enough for Alec, Magnus was sure if he took another look at his list he would find someone more suitable.

Alec was shaking his head with a look of despair on his face. “It didn’t end after 20 minutes, when I realised that talking wasn’t going to help, I ordered drinks, thinking that it would loosen us both up.” That was something Magnus could get on board with, just one or two drinks for Dutch courage and to help them both relax. He was really pleased Alec had made the effort to try and turn things around, it showed how committed he was to the process.

“…And did it help?” Magnus asked hopefully.

The only way to interpret Alec’s expression at this point was an ‘are you kidding me’ look. “Not really, no, we sat there for over an hour more, trying and failing to start up a conversation and nothing.” If possible, Alec slumped further in his seat, and shrugged his hands as if he was clueless as to where things went wrong.

Magnus felt terrible. “I’m so sorry the date was disappointing and ended after an awkward couple of hours.” There was no way he would let Alexander have such a disappointing date the second time around, Magnus was determined to find Alec somebody incredible.

Alec sat up straighter, the earlier sulkiness disappearing to be replaced by a man who clearly wanted to tell Magnus what happened. “Oh no Magnus, it didn’t end there. I said to him that this wasn’t really working and he completely agreed. He asked me if I wanted to get out of there. We were both slightly drunk at this point and his place was closer, by then I was thinking that I didn’t have anything to lose.”

Raising his eyebrows, Magnus asked “What happened Alexander?” He had a feeling he knew where this was going.

“Well, I figured, I’d made the effort, put myself out there, hell, I even made sure everything was neat and tidy down there, just in case, you know...” Now Magnus had to concentrate on the job in hand while Alec was putting images in his head that couldn’t help but make him blush and were only going to add an extra layer of details to the torment of his dreams. 

“I knew it wasn’t going to go beyond the next couple of hours, we just had no connection, but…you know a hook-up would still end the night on a positive, and I mean, how bad can it possibly be? Let’s face it, bad sex is still sex.” He shrugged, an unreadable expression on his face.

Magnus didn’t know if he should be at least a little relieved that Alec had got something out of the night. That hope was short-lived.

“I couldn’t have been more wrong, it was probably more awkward than that time I experimented with a girl, and trust me, neither of us went away from that encounter with any level of satisfaction!” There was no way Magnus could hold back a small laugh at that.

Thankfully, Alec was too wrapped up in his story to pay any mind to the laughing. “If there was an award for the worst attempt at sex, this would take it.” for a moment Alec looked lost in thought before continuing to recount the date.

“I can’t even blame him, it was both of us, every move was wrong and uncomfortable. I don’t like to blow my own horn, but I’m usually pretty good at all the sex stuff. Oh god, what if he tells someone how bad it was, I’m never going to get laid again, I’m going to end up a meme for the worst sex ever.” Magnus had to stifle another laugh at the drama queen antics Alec was displaying. Be professional, Magnus reminded himself. “Fuck Magnus, neither of us even got a happy ending!”

There was no way anybody could ever consider Magnus shy, his friends would often groan at his penchant for oversharing details of his sex life, but he absolutely had to stop Alec talking about sex or he was going to find himself in an uncomfortable position again. “Can I ask what you think it was that made things so difficult, if we try and figure out where things went wrong it will really help me to plan your next date. What specifically was it about Ben that made things awkward?”

Alec pondered the question for a moment. “Truthfully Magnus, I have no idea. You met the guy right?”

“I did.” Magnus would never send someone on a date he or Simon hadn’t met in person. They had to go through the same questionnaire the client did. Many potential matches were disregarded at this stage.

“He was attractive, we had plenty in common. He even showed me pictures of him surrounded by adorable dogs at the shelter, that alone would normally be a real plus for me. He just didn’t feel right, I don’t know what meeting the love of my life is supposed to feel like, but that wasn’t it. Obviously I know I would be attracted to them physically, but there should be an easy banter, somebody I feel comfortable talking to and who makes me laugh.” Magnus wanted that for Alec, he had never felt more invested in ensuring one of his clients got their happily ever after.

“I think it may have just been bad Luck Alexander. Sometimes a person can tick all the right boxes on paper, but at the end of the day if you don’t have chemistry, if there is no spark it’s just not going to go anywhere.” If Magnus was honest he could begin to see why the system matched him and Alec. He could happily listen to the man talk all day, he imagined everyone was the same, it was impossible not to be drawn into Alexanders world when he spoke.

“So what happens now, do you send me on another date?” Thankfully, Alec seemed like he was looking forward to the idea of his next match. “Yes, if you are happy to try again, I will take a look at the men I have in your file and double check their profiles. I will send you details over the next few days if that’s okay? Please don’t worry if it takes a bit longer though, I want to run everything through the system with Simon again so we get a better match this time.”

“One thing you might want to add to your questionnaire Magnus…”

What on earth personal information could Alec possibly think was missed, he was more than thorough with his answers. “Go on.” Magnus encouraged.

Alec looked visibly excited at this point, like he couldn’t wait to speak. “Tattoos Magnus, you never asked about them, I have 19 and Ben managed to avoid every single one of them when we got naked. Who even does that? You really should include questions about tattoos, it’s like one of my biggest turn-on’s and was a complete turn off for Ben.” What did Alec just say? Magnus got stuck somewhere around 19 tattoos, his brain failing to focus on anything else wondering if they were all black and bold, contrasting against his lightly sun blushed skin.

“I could show you if you like” Alec started to roll up his left sleeve while he spoke. “Or maybe you could take photos, you know to show the other guy.”

Flustered, Magnus snapped back to attention, there was every chance if he didn’t find words and stop Alec he was going to start removing clothes in his office, which was something Magnus was sure he wouldn’t survive. The tip of a black tattoo against the pale skin of his neck had already featured in more than one dream he was pretending never happened, and now he could see Alec’s forearm the man clearly had a theme to his tattoos, the same dark marks forming a different symbol against his skin.

Magnus shook himself to dispel the mental images those tattoos brought and focused on Alec’s question. “Do you think my tattoos will put off a lot of people Magnus? Guys certainly seem to appreciate them when its casual, are they off putting to men looking for something serious?”

It was a good thing Alec was able to completely run away with a topic, it made his inability to respond in a timely manner less noticeable, hopefully. “Do you find them attractive Magnus, would they be a turn off for you?” Alec had undone the top two buttons on his shirt and was yanking the material to the side to reveal another symbol on his right shoulder, smaller than the other two he had shown and more swirly than the others. It also allowed him a peak of Alec’s chest, and the perfect covering of hair contrasting against his skin.

Magnus didn’t recognize his own voice as he responded. “No Alexander, definitely not a turnoff for me. To answer your question regarding men in general, no, I don’t think most men would find tattoos off putting, but maybe you are right and I should include questions about them. Probably no photos though, there has to be some mystery when it comes to getting naked, right?” Magnus certainly wouldn’t find those tattoos off putting. If it had been him, he would have made every effort to leave no tattoo unexplored, remembering Alec telling him how sensitive they were.

Alec was practically beaming at the reply, hopefully he hadn’t realised just how much his tattoos affected Magnus. “What about you, do you have any tattoos Magnus? Fuck, sorry, I shouldn’t have asked you that. It’s probably not very professional, please don’t feel you have to answer.”

Without thinking Magnus placed his hand on his left hip bone, where his single tattoo began. “That’s okay Alexander, I don’t mind you asking. I have one tattoo, a phoenix. It reminds me of what I have survived, and no matter how difficult things can be at times, good things can always be born in their wake.”

In that moment, Alec didn’t feel like his client and this didn’t feel like a job. They shared stories of their past, Alec telling him that the tattoos had begun as a way for he and his siblings to bond, to connect them to Jace at a deeper level than just sharing a surname. Alec had plans in the future to add to his tattoos, one to symbolise his marriage. He hoped that his future husband would wear the same tattoo. Magnus shared stories of his chosen family, completely understanding that is isn’t a blood connection that binds people together, but shared experiences and unwavering support especially through the rough times.

The pair spent a little over an hour talking about anything and everything. Magnus felt like he was talking to a friend rather than a client. Alexander was incredibly easy to talk to but Magnus needed to bring the conversation back on track, Alec was a paying client and he owed him and his love life his undivided attention.

At some point during the course of the evening Magnus’ imagination had stopped being limited to thoughts of how attractive Alec was and now included thoughts about just how compatible they were. He needed to pull himself back to the reason they were there in the first place. “I hope your first date hasn’t put you off Alec. I have some really great matches for you, there is definitely the right guy for you on our list.” Magnus needed to get his imagination under control, he was repeatedly finding himself in a complete mess where Alexander was concerned. His job was to find Alec somebody who wanted the same things out of life and there was no way he was going to fail.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check my twitter @ChocLime for an image of Magnus's tattoo. Thank you Denise, without you I would be repeating myself every other sentence!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, let me know what you thought. Apologies for any errors, writing does not come naturally to me!


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